Day 14: Bouquets

Hinata looked up, her eyelashes fluttering as the light of dawn reached her.

Her first D-Rank had been a success.

Not that she expected it to end in failure. She had every bit of faith in her teammates as well as Kurenai. Regardless, it was a relief that everything had turned out fine, even if the bandits' attack at the end had been a surprise.

Remembering that, she blushed, although not exactly because of the bandits themselves.

Sasuke had… behaved rather oddly, when they met each other the night before.

In the past, she had gotten some hints when Sasuke became nervous or skittish around her. He would look away, pretending as if he didn't care, but there was one thing that would always betray him.

And that was how easily he could blush.

Now, whenever that did happen, it wasn't anything overly dramatic. Most of the times it was just a bit of color on his ears that could sometimes reach the bridge of his nose, tops. But last night…

Even in the almost complete darkness of the alley she had pulled him in, Hinata didn't fail to notice how his face became as red as a tomato.

What the reason for it could be she had no idea, and she had thought about it the whole night, turning and tossing in bed, unable to come up with an explanation for it. Nothing out of the ordinary had happened, as far as she was concerned. They had talked, she had told him about her mission and how she got injured, and then, after she asked him if he was worried about her…

That's when it happened. That's when Sasuke blushed as bright as a festival light, before throwing a generic response and then fleeing from her.

Hinata had, in the past, let a lot of Sasuke's weird behaviors pass. Foremost how he accepted her 'confession' despite claiming he had no romantic feelings for her, but there were also other instances, such as his vehemence in being around her and having dates, how possessive he could get from time to time, and, of course, that time when he kissed her…

It was enough, she had decided, and this time, the way he blushed and then dismissed her question so easily… Hinata wasn't going to stand by it anymore.

She was going to confront Sasuke about his feelings, and make him admit what his real deal with her was.

And for that reason she had woken up early and walked the small distance between her compound and his district, hoping to catch him at a time he wouldn't still be out and about.

Of course, she had neglected one small factor in all of this.

She had never before in her life set foot in the Uchiha district, and so, had no idea where to go.

Worse, she had also neglected to consider that, like her own clan, the Uchiha were likely early risers, something proven correct as soon as she stepped inside and immediately had at least a dozen pair of dark, black eyes turning to her, staring into her soul.

They were going to recognize her.

They were going to recognize her and tell her father.

Her father would ask her what she was doing at the Uchiha district so early in the morning, and he would find out about her relationship with Sasuke, and she would be punished.

How could she have screwed up so badly?

"Hinata?"

She yelped, completely blindsided by the deep voice coming from her left. When she looked up, only then realizing the way she had frozen on the spot and stayed there gods knew how long like an idiot, she saw none other than Uchiha Itachi there, dressed already in his ninja wear, apparently on his way to a mission or at least the Hokage Tower in the middle of the village.

She gulped. "I-Itachi-san… good morning…"

"Good morning… I must say, it's a surprise seeing you here…" he spoke slowly as he approached. He seemed to notice the way her body was locked up, and, giving a glance at their surroundings, correctly guessed the reason behind it, because with a small wave of his hand his clanmates all nodded and moved away, finally continuing with their usual activities. He looked at her again. "Are you perhaps looking for Sasuke?"

"Mmm, yes…"

"Ah, stupid question" he smiled self-deprecatingly, but before she could reassure him that it was no such at all, he gestured behind him, his body turning to the side and towards a path ahead. "I can show you where my house is… I'm sure Sasuke's just woken up. He'll be… thrilled to have you visiting so early in the morning" he commented with a soft smile, that although kind it felt a little… off.

Hinata shook her head. "It's not necessary! Itachi-san, don't you have a mission? I would hate to keep you…"

"Nonsense, I have nothing important to do" he said in what likely was supposed to be a joking tone, but that came out slightly irritated. He grinned. "I wouldn't want my little brother's cute girlfriend to get lost after all. Sasuke wouldn't forgive me."

She blushed, and kept trying to convince him that it wasn't necessary, but Itachi was stubborn, and in the end, she accepted, walking side by side as a small silence enveloped them.

With each new minute, she was becoming more and more unsure of the decision she had made.

When they arrived, Hinata was a bit surprised to see that Sasuke's house was… a perfectly normal one. Yes, it looked slightly bigger than the others they had passed, and in comparison it even looked a little more elegant, befitting the abode of the clan head, but…

She didn't know why she expected something more like her own home. Something that would clearly scream out main family. Not that her house was anything overly impressive. The Hyuuga were, after all, frugal, and humility was one of their most important values. But there was a difference between the house in which the main family lived and those of the branch family. A subtle one, but there nonetheless.

There was nothing of the sort here.

"I'm home!" Itachi announced, allowing Hinata to pass before him and taking off his sandals. She did so as well, her heart beating way too fast, feeling as if it would take fly any moment.

"Itachi?" the voice belonged to a woman, and it was followed by footsteps approaching. "What are you doing back so soon? I thought you had to report to the… oh" the woman, Uchiha Mikoto, raised a hand to her mouth, her eyes landing on her figure as Hinata did her best to become as small as possible. "I didn't know you brought a guest."

"I found her in the entrance to the district. She said she wanted to talk to Sasuke" Itachi explained, smiling sweetly, a smile that was returned by his mother, as well as a glance as if they were secretly communicating something Hinata had no idea of. Maybe it was just her imagination. "Do you know if he's done with breakfast?"

"Actually" Mikoto hummed, gesturing with her hand so the two of them would come further inside. Despite her apprehensions, Hinata obeyed, especially as Itachi placed a hand on her shoulder and so very slightly pushed her forward. "He hasn't even woken up. I was going to his room now to do it, but maybe Hinata-chan would want to do the honors?"

No!

"I-I-I will just wait here! In fact, I'm sorry to intrude so early in the morning!" she bowed in a perfect ninety-degree angle. "I don't know what came over me to come at this hour… it was so incredibly rude of me, I beg your forgiveness!"

"Now, now" Mikoto said in a conciliatory tone, and in the next second, she felt a hand on her shoulder and another on her chin, softly lifting it until she was staring up at the woman. "There's no need to be so nervous or apologetic. It's no problem for us if you come to visit, as you can see, we're all awake already."

"Except for Sasuke" Itachi interjected with a huff of laughter.

"Except for Sasuke" Mikoto nodded, smiling mischievously along with her eldest son, "but he should know better than to sleep in, so the fault's with him. So, why don't you wait for him in the kitchen with Itachi while I go tell him you're here? Have you eaten breakfast already? We have some fresh rice and egg if you want."

"I… I have eaten already. Thank you" she bowed again. Mikoto sighed.

"You don't need to be so polite, you know? As Sasuke's girlfriend, you're practically part of the family now!" she announced happily, causing Hinata to almost choke on nothing but air.

Luckily Itachi decided to intervene then. "I will be showing Hinata to the kitchen… mother" he nodded at her, gently patting the girl on the back and guiding her to the back of the house.

Despite saying she had already eaten, Itachi still served her a cup of tea, claiming that it would be terribly unbecoming of them not to offer her even that. Not wanting to be impolite, she accepted, and the next few minutes passed with small bits of conversation here and there, that honestly Hinata couldn't repeat if asked, so far away was her mind.

When Sasuke appeared, he did so with a big frown and stomping very loudly.

"What are you doing here?" was the first thing he said, taking a seat next to her and continuing to glare. Before she could answer, Itachi sighed, raising his right hand and flicking his little brother on the forehead. "Ouch! What the hell?!"

"That's no way of speaking to your girlfriend, little brother" he droned as he took a sip from his tea.

Sasuke hissed at him. "Not wanna hear it from someone who can't even admit he has a girlfriend in the first place!"

Itachi coughed, only his amazing reflexes and self-control allowing him not to spit his tea at the low blow his little brother had just delivered. With a glare, he put down his cup on the table, the ceramic clicking loudly on the silent space.

"I don't remember you being so… bold" the older boy pronounced slowly, with a cadence that sounded dangerous to Hinata's ears.

To Sasuke's credit, he only shuddered a little while continuing to match Itachi's glare.

The silent standoff was, luckily, cut by Mikoto's entrance, carrying a vase on her arms with a beautiful bouquet of different flowers arranged in it. She stopped for a moment, seeing her sons' behavior, before rolling her eyes and walking to the table.

"Whatever you two are doing, stop. We have a guest" she said while pointedly placing the vase between Itachi and Sasuke, causing the first to back off and the latter to complain about pollen getting into his food. "Shush, you don't even have food yet."

"No, but…!"

"Did you offer something to Hinata-chan, Itachi?" Mikoto blissfully ignored her youngest, who could only sigh and glance to the side as his brother answered their mother that yes, he gave her some tea. His gaze found hers as he was starting to pout, and he quickly composed himself when he caught her watching him, narrowing his eyes at her in a silent question.

Hinata felt her face starting to get hot. There was no way she could tell him what she wanted with his mother and brother present, so instead she turned her attention to the flowers, finding a perfect distraction in them.

"Uchiha-san, that's a lovely bouquet" she complimented shyly, making the older woman beam.

"You think so? Thank you so much, Hinata-chan!" she clasped her hands, pulling them near her cheek as she rested her face on them. "And you know what the best part is? Sasuke actually helped me make it!"

"Mom!" the boy complained. The, by now, expected blush started to creep up his neck, though Hinata couldn't understand why. What was so embarrassing about helping his mom pick up flowers?

"I enjoy gardening, but normally I do it all alone" Mikoto sighed dramatically while Sasuke continued to mumble something about how he wanted her to stop talking, to no avail. "But lately, my little boy has been accompanying me. Imagine my surprise when he suddenly came up to me and asked me about the different types of flowers and their meanings and how to take care of them! Why, if I didn't know any better, I would think his sudden interest had a very specific cause, as it started about two months ago when he came home with this strange list, but surely it's just my beloved son finally taking pity on his poor mother and deciding to take up a common hobby with her, right?"

And she finished this with the biggest, most innocent smile Hinata had seen the woman muster so far. A smile she didn't trust at all, as she felt her own face burning just like Sasuke's was at the moment.

It didn't take a genius to realize what event made Sasuke suddenly take an interest in flowers. The thought made Hinata almost faint.

"Mother" Itachi finally spoke, filling the silence that neither Sasuke nor Hinata were able to break after the grandiose monologue from the woman. "Sasuke hasn't eaten yet, you know?"

"Oh, my! How absentminded of me!" Mikoto lamented, walking to the stove and starting to fill a bowl with rice. "It's fine, sweetheart, I'll have your breakfast ready in a moment!"

"…thanks mom" Sasuke mumbled, hiding his face behind a hand, utterly avoiding eye-contact with Hinata.

Not that she was looking at him either.